Sweatpants
by Reikajen
Summary: This story is One shoot. Are you what you wear? I mean do you think that things could be different if you are not dress as usual? Pepper's fight against vulnerability... Scene takes place between IM1 and IM2.


**Hello everyone ****:)**

**This idea of one-shot came in my head during the week-end and I was not able to focus on the next chapter of my other fic (what would happen if she had answered this call). So finally, I decided to write this one to be free to finish the other one… I hope you will like it. ****This story happened between IM1 and IM2**

**There are some lyrics of songs hidden in the text, I don't know if you will be able to find them. I'm really wondering if some of you will figure out where and which songs. It is like a kind of challenge that I propose to you.**

**As usual, I'm French and I know that my English has some weakness, so if you want to help me to improve, you're most welcome.**

**Thank you for read it, and I hope you will enjoy it…**

**I do not own any of Marvel Character (unfortunately)**

**_Sweatpants_**

It was a sunny and cool Sunday afternoon in Malibu. Barometer indicated nearly 65°F, minutes and hours hands both stopped on the 3. Virginia Potts was in her apartment wearing black sweatpants with a white tank top which was the only sign that she was in day-off. Yes, because if you watch closely at everything else, you couldn't figure out. She was in front of her laptop, working on a excel sheet, her backberry within easy reach, a hot cup of coffee next to her and pile of papers on her right.

Pepper was a kind of "work addict", she was always working even on her day-off. And no need to say that her days-off were not abundant. It was one of the wrong sides to work for Tony Stark. Wait a minute! What was exactly the good side to work for Tony Stark? She stopped asking herself the question since years now. Anyway, be the personal assistant of Tony Stark banned you to think of Sunday as a day-off. But, since M. Stark became a kind of Super-Heroes and left during several days for mission, she started to have more Sunday off than usual. Today was one of them. Tony was in mission in Middle East since 2 days and he was not supposed to come back before at least tomorrow. So Pepper just stayed at home to work. No need to go the Stark's mansion because he was not there to ask her to come to fix some stupid things (sometimes she even thought that it was just pretexts to ruined all her hypothetic plans) and no need to go to Stark industries headquarters because, on Sunday, it was always almost empty. Therefore, she was relaxing at home, music in the background, working on the graph that she had to present at the next Board of Directors, or actually that Tony was supposed to present. But as usual, she was doing Tony's job! Sometimes, she let herself to believe that she was more than his simple personal assistant. Without her, she didn't even know how he could run the company, especially since Obadiah death. Anyway, even if it was not in her job description (and god only knows how much things she used to do that were not in her job description), she was doing it.

Thirty minutes and a cold cup of coffee later, she suddenly realized that she missed an important document. She checked all the papers on the table but was not able to find it. She thought about it and finally figured out that she probably let it on Tony's desk at Stark Industries. He was supposed to use it to make this damned presentation for the board of directors when he was called by Fury for this lousy mission. Two options appeared to her: find it tomorrow morning and finish the presentation during the day, or going to pick up it now. She thought about her schedule for tomorrow and she decided that it was better to go now because tomorrow will be busy and there would have no chance that she could finished the presentation in time. Moreover, when you used to work for Tony Stark you learned to never postpone what you can do now because you never known what could happen with him.

She stood up and took some times to think about changing her clothes. Finally, her lazy part got the upper hand. Nobody would be there except maybe the security guard and she would just make a roundtrip. She would probably spend more time in her car than outside. So she took only a sweatshirt, jumped inside her sneakers, grabbed her car key and her Stark Industries swipe card and left her apartment.

Around half an hour later, she arrived at Stark Industries HQs. She gave a nod to the security guard and started to climb the stair leading to Tony's office. She opened the door and entered in the well-known office. She stared at the desk trying to localize the covet document. Thanks to her, Tony's desk was always well organized but unfortunately, she let him alone in his office the last day before he left for mission and a lot of things were lied around. She was little bended on the desk to reach and arrange everything, showing her back to the door since several minutes when the door opened. She was so absorbed by her duty that she didn't hear the man enter in the room.

He gazed at her for some time before figured out who she was "Pepper?"

She turned back fast when she heard the voice that she knew too much. "Tony?" she asked in disbelieve

"Yes, who else?" he answered with a charming grin.

"What are you doing here? You were not supposed to come back before tomorrow."

"Let's say that I just finished earlier… I caught all the bad guys so I decided to come back home instead of staying there waiting that my PA decides that it is a good time for me to come back." He teased her. She rolled her eyes. "Come one Potts, when I'm late you're mad at me and when I'm early, you are also angry… What could I do to make you happy?" he wondered with a little smirk.

"I'm sorry Tony, it's just that I didn't except to see you here. You were supposed to be in mission, and we are Sunday and usually I have to beg you to come in this office and…" In between her sales talk she really started to ask herself what the hell he was doing here! She paused and added "Yes! Really! What are you doing here Tony?!"

"Heyyy, stop shouting at me! It's still my office if I'm not mistaken." He defended himself. "And yes, I can clearly see that you didn't except to see me" he added looking at her from top to toe with a bright smile on his lips.

It was clearly at this moment that she realized why he was smiling, stupidly smiling precisely. She blushed and started to bend her body and cross her arms around it, ashamed, as if she was naked in front of him. "I'm sorry, I really didn't except to see someone. I just came here to grab some paperwork and…"

He cut her short "What are you sorry for exactly?"

She swallowed hard "Because… I mean… Because I'm not dress professionally."

He roared with laughter "No, seriously, Pepper, don't apologies for that. I really like the way you are dress." He added with a charming smile.

"It's not funny Tony. And I have a lot of work to do! I don't have time to please your banter today. Especially when I'm involved in. "she said grabbing the paper that she needed and started her way to the door.

"No Pepper, wait! I mean it! I really like it! I mean, it is one of the rare times I can see you without your business suit and I have to say that I like it… Even more than this backless dress." He smirked

"Ohhh please…" she said in denied, continuing her way to the door.

When she passed at his level, he caught her hand to stop her. "Wait, you are leaving with my file."

She looked at him in disbelieve "what?"

"Yes, the document that you have in your beautiful hand is the reason of my presence here." He stated smirking at her.

"Why do you need this document?" she asked with a question gaze

"Maybe because we have a board of director in 2 days and that I'm supposed to prepare the presentation for it."

"But… You… I… I mean… You know… I was guessing… I… You…"

He rested his hands on her shoulders "Breath Potts, I don't understand anything in your mumbo jumbo!" She blushed again… He started to shake her gently seeing her blushing and speechless "You are not Pepper Potts! What did you do of my personal assistant?" he joked laughing.

She was swallowing hard again… Pepper used to know how to keep her head with Tony but today was weird and she was kind of lost! First, Tony was on the office without she begged him to, second, it was on Sunday, third, he came to grab a file for working on a presentation, fourth, a presentation that she was assuming he would never do because he was supposed to be in mission, fifth, it meant that he came back earlier from the mission which was really rare, sixth, his first thought after that was to work on this presentation and finally above all she was wearing this fucking sweatpants, her hair was messy and she was in sneakers ! Even if she was Virginia Potts, the personal assistant of Tony Stark, how come she could keep a cool head in middle of this!

He stopped laughing as he started to worry seeing her gazing at her shoes in silence "Pepper, are you ok?" His hands were still on her shoulders.

She finally found the courage to looking up at him. Her eyes met his. He looked at her in the eyes. She had strong feelings for him, more than what a PA was supposed to have for his boss. She knew it but she would never admit it. She was too much professional for that but when his chocolate brown eyes were lost like that in her ocean blue eyes, it was hard to resist. Did she really want to resist actually? If she just listened to her heart she would never resist. Then if she survived for more than ten years as his PA, it was exactly because she could fight against the desire. She didn't want to finish like all the Tony's conquest; she probably loved him too much for that. But today she felt more vulnerable than usual. Without her high-heel, she felt more over a barrel. She was shaking inside. His expression was intense… If she didn't pull herself together now, she would yield… So she jumped fast on her only line of defense: professionalism!

"Yes, everything is fine Mister Stark. I'm sorry for that. I just assumed that you will not be back in time so I started working at this presentation that's why I came here to pick up the document."

His heart sank when he heard her coming back to this formal tone. He had strong feelings for her, it was a sure things but he didn't know really how do deal with it. He was a playboy, it was another sure thing but he didn't know actually how to love someone. When they were alone like that, close to each other, gazing into each other's eyes, the only thing that he wanted to do was kissing her. But he was never really sure what to do around Pepper. He didn't want to screw up, not with her. She deserved much better. She deserved to be treated like a queen, because she was a queen for him. She was the one who keep him from falling apart. Without her, he didn't know what to do. He even supposed that he could never ever live a day without her. She was all he had, all he wanted actually. If he screwed up, he would lose her forever, and it was not conceivable. So, he did what he used to do in a situation like that, he just went back to the formal tone also.

He removed his hand from her shoulders and took the document from her hands "It's Ok Miss Potts, I'll handle it. You can go back to your day-off and take some rest."

"Will that be all Mister Stark?"

"Yes, that will be all Miss Potts."

"Well, see you tomorrow, then" she added reaching the door.

He was transfixed on his spot. His heart yelled at him to catch her, to not let her leave but the door slamming told him that it was too late… She left already… He moved to his desk and he let himself fall onto his chair. He dropped the document on his desk and gazed at it and finally smiled. She would probably never know that he didn't really plan to work on this presentation. The only reason why he went to pick up the document this Sunday afternoon in his office, barely two hours after his return from mission, was because he wanted to have a pretext to call her. When he came back after these 2 days of mission, he was missing her and the only subterfuge that he could find to bother her during a day-off had to be related to work. So he thought about this damned presentation and he remembered that the documents to prepare it were on his desk, in his office. So he just planned to pick them up and to call her after to ask her to come at the mansion to help him… He didn't expect to find her, here, in sweatpants. He asked himself why he found her more beautiful like that than in her classical business suit or dress. It was even harder to resist loving or kissing her than usual. The answer was simple finally; it was just because she was more real like that. She was more natural than all the women that he slept with. She was… She was Pepper…

He took his head in his hand and started to blame himself. He thought that he should have kissed her, he should have pushed her up against the wall, just like he wasn't scared at all!

But what Tony couldn't know is that, at the same moment, Pepper was in her car, her head on the wheel, wondering what went wrong, why she was here, in her car, lamenting that he didn't kiss her! Why this damned sweatpants had complicated everything!

She would never know that he really wanted to kiss her and Tony would never know that she was right on the edge and ready to fall.


End file.
